Merchant’s Tale and Prologue - Jeffrey Chaucer
ao1 a02 a03 a05
Passage 10 10
Wider knowledge 10 10 10 10
Potential themes:
- Youth vs age - Misery - Love vs lust
- Deception - Religion - Appearance vs reality
- Women vs men - Betrayal - Marriage
- Power and conflict - Comedy - Status
Scene sections
Prologue, Januarie’s wish and decision to marry (33-186), Januarie telling his friends he wants to marry (163-353), chooses a bride but has internal dilemma
(365-476), marriage and wedding party (477-555), introduction of Damian and Maia’s relationship (654-808), Januarie's garden (809-844), Januarie’s
blindness (845-898), Maia reassurance Januarie whilst deceiving him (899-1006), Pluto and Proserpine (1007-1107), Maia cheats on Januarie with Damian
(1108-1141), Januarie gains his sight back and finds out but is deceived again (1142-1206)
, Context
Context Definition Relation to Merchant’s
Life and works of Chaucer (personal life) Much of Chaucer’s early life is unknown. It is Chaucer’s humble upbringings and experience
expected he was born between 1340 and 1345 to a with hardships can show his unreliability to his
Merchant father. His poor financial status meant protagonist, Januarie. This allows him to further
he had to devote his life to working and not mock him and exploit his flaws.
writing. Chaucer went beyond his origins of trade
through being a page to queen Elizabeth in 1257,
where he met his wife Phillipa Roet, daughter of
Sir Payne Roet, in 1366 but she died in 1387.
Phillipa was a higher-borne lady, who raised
Chaucer’s reputation. This allowed him to become
a highly respected courtier, civil servant and
employee of the crown. He was a member of
Edward III’s army in France but got captured and
had to give £16 for a safe return (equivalent of
£9,400 today).
Life and works of Chaucer (inspiration, courtly Chaucer was inspired by French and Italian A particular link of his Italian influence to the
love) Literature in terms of their themes, ideas and Merchant’s Tale is the narrative poem, Troilus
stylistic approaches in order to create a new and Criseyde. This is a poem about courtly love
poetry in English, allowing his work to be embodying the idea of idealised love. It praises an
revolutionary. all-encompassing love that is held in tragic
separation, like Maia and Damian.
Some scholars read Troilus and Criseyde as a
catholic condemnation of the sinful and
corruptive effects of courtly love that emphasise
the heathen nature of idolising women over
loving God.
Life and works of Chaucer (Canterbury Tales) These were written in Chaucer’s later years of The competitive nature between the pilgrims can
life. It centres around 29 pilgrims who meet by explain the hyperbolic language conveyed in
chance before setting out on a pilgrimage to Saint Merchant’s Tale.
Thomas Becket at Canterbury. The pilgrims tell The Merchant refusing to share his one story can
each other stories to pass the time and free link to the prologue through his ironic depictions,
, support was to be given to the best story as causing some unreliability.
judged by Harry Bailey. The knight as their Clerk’s Tale and Wife of Bath link most to the
highest rank begins, then the Clerk who tells a Merchant’s Tale by providing themes of
tale of a woman whose husbands decides to test anti-feminism.
her loyalty though strange and extreme tests and
ends with a Merchant who expresses his own
less-than-happy experience of marriage but after
refusing to share a personal anecdote, he tells a
tale of an old knight who marries a young wife.
Chaucer died before completing this scheme and
had written 23 stories from the pilgrims. His
intention was to bring together a group of
characters (Knight, Squire, religious leader, nun,
summoner) from different ranks (wealthy,
middle-class Franklin to lowly Ploughman)
representing the whole cross-section of
mediaeval society.
Life in the 1300s (feudal system) There was a strict hierarchical structure in Merchants were below knights but above
society called the feudal system, due to King peasants; they had less duties than a knight, had
William’s attempt to control the land. This a role of sourcing and selling supplies and gained
consisted of peasants → knights → lords and some royal favours. Subsequent development
nobles→ the king. Despite the distinct from this led them to being firmly established as
differences, there was also an interdependence members of an increasingly wealthy and
within this; peasants worked the land for nobles influential middle class. Having a peasant
and knights and they offered protection in narrator would create bias as we know their
return, nobles gave land to professional soldiers attitudes towards the higher class through the
and the soldiers fought for the nobles and king in Peasants Revolt. Similarly, a knight or nobleman
return, the king owned all the country and made as a narrator would be prejudiced to the lower
laws and gave an area of land called a fife to rich class and speak in a way favourable to the rich.
lords and nobles, the lords and novels supplied However, a merchant narrator can understand
the king with soldiers and horses for his army in perspective as both, acting as a middle ground
return. putting forward an unbiased point of view,
Peasants were at the bottom of society and had increasing his reliability and respectability as
little rights despite making up 90% of the the voice of the tale.
population. Most were villeins but some were Various aspects of the mercantile world reflected
freemen that had more rights. The collective Chaucer’s portrayal. One impression was that he
decided to overthrow the King in the Peasants was a well-dressed character with a fashionable
ao1 a02 a03 a05
Passage 10 10
Wider knowledge 10 10 10 10
Potential themes:
- Youth vs age - Misery - Love vs lust
- Deception - Religion - Appearance vs reality
- Women vs men - Betrayal - Marriage
- Power and conflict - Comedy - Status
Scene sections
Prologue, Januarie’s wish and decision to marry (33-186), Januarie telling his friends he wants to marry (163-353), chooses a bride but has internal dilemma
(365-476), marriage and wedding party (477-555), introduction of Damian and Maia’s relationship (654-808), Januarie's garden (809-844), Januarie’s
blindness (845-898), Maia reassurance Januarie whilst deceiving him (899-1006), Pluto and Proserpine (1007-1107), Maia cheats on Januarie with Damian
(1108-1141), Januarie gains his sight back and finds out but is deceived again (1142-1206)
, Context
Context Definition Relation to Merchant’s
Life and works of Chaucer (personal life) Much of Chaucer’s early life is unknown. It is Chaucer’s humble upbringings and experience
expected he was born between 1340 and 1345 to a with hardships can show his unreliability to his
Merchant father. His poor financial status meant protagonist, Januarie. This allows him to further
he had to devote his life to working and not mock him and exploit his flaws.
writing. Chaucer went beyond his origins of trade
through being a page to queen Elizabeth in 1257,
where he met his wife Phillipa Roet, daughter of
Sir Payne Roet, in 1366 but she died in 1387.
Phillipa was a higher-borne lady, who raised
Chaucer’s reputation. This allowed him to become
a highly respected courtier, civil servant and
employee of the crown. He was a member of
Edward III’s army in France but got captured and
had to give £16 for a safe return (equivalent of
£9,400 today).
Life and works of Chaucer (inspiration, courtly Chaucer was inspired by French and Italian A particular link of his Italian influence to the
love) Literature in terms of their themes, ideas and Merchant’s Tale is the narrative poem, Troilus
stylistic approaches in order to create a new and Criseyde. This is a poem about courtly love
poetry in English, allowing his work to be embodying the idea of idealised love. It praises an
revolutionary. all-encompassing love that is held in tragic
separation, like Maia and Damian.
Some scholars read Troilus and Criseyde as a
catholic condemnation of the sinful and
corruptive effects of courtly love that emphasise
the heathen nature of idolising women over
loving God.
Life and works of Chaucer (Canterbury Tales) These were written in Chaucer’s later years of The competitive nature between the pilgrims can
life. It centres around 29 pilgrims who meet by explain the hyperbolic language conveyed in
chance before setting out on a pilgrimage to Saint Merchant’s Tale.
Thomas Becket at Canterbury. The pilgrims tell The Merchant refusing to share his one story can
each other stories to pass the time and free link to the prologue through his ironic depictions,
, support was to be given to the best story as causing some unreliability.
judged by Harry Bailey. The knight as their Clerk’s Tale and Wife of Bath link most to the
highest rank begins, then the Clerk who tells a Merchant’s Tale by providing themes of
tale of a woman whose husbands decides to test anti-feminism.
her loyalty though strange and extreme tests and
ends with a Merchant who expresses his own
less-than-happy experience of marriage but after
refusing to share a personal anecdote, he tells a
tale of an old knight who marries a young wife.
Chaucer died before completing this scheme and
had written 23 stories from the pilgrims. His
intention was to bring together a group of
characters (Knight, Squire, religious leader, nun,
summoner) from different ranks (wealthy,
middle-class Franklin to lowly Ploughman)
representing the whole cross-section of
mediaeval society.
Life in the 1300s (feudal system) There was a strict hierarchical structure in Merchants were below knights but above
society called the feudal system, due to King peasants; they had less duties than a knight, had
William’s attempt to control the land. This a role of sourcing and selling supplies and gained
consisted of peasants → knights → lords and some royal favours. Subsequent development
nobles→ the king. Despite the distinct from this led them to being firmly established as
differences, there was also an interdependence members of an increasingly wealthy and
within this; peasants worked the land for nobles influential middle class. Having a peasant
and knights and they offered protection in narrator would create bias as we know their
return, nobles gave land to professional soldiers attitudes towards the higher class through the
and the soldiers fought for the nobles and king in Peasants Revolt. Similarly, a knight or nobleman
return, the king owned all the country and made as a narrator would be prejudiced to the lower
laws and gave an area of land called a fife to rich class and speak in a way favourable to the rich.
lords and nobles, the lords and novels supplied However, a merchant narrator can understand
the king with soldiers and horses for his army in perspective as both, acting as a middle ground
return. putting forward an unbiased point of view,
Peasants were at the bottom of society and had increasing his reliability and respectability as
little rights despite making up 90% of the the voice of the tale.
population. Most were villeins but some were Various aspects of the mercantile world reflected
freemen that had more rights. The collective Chaucer’s portrayal. One impression was that he
decided to overthrow the King in the Peasants was a well-dressed character with a fashionable
